Episode 508 - 9 Chefs Compete
The eighth episode of Season 5 of Hell’s Kitchen aired on FOX, on March 26, 2009. On that episode, the annual Blind Taste Test occurred, one chef did not make it through dinner service, and one team made a big comeback after a slow start. Intro On their way back to the dorms, Giovanni tried to calm Carol down, but she was still angry at Andrea for the pasta incident from the previous service. Meanwhile, LA confronted Lacey, saying that she was only lucky that Ramsay did not care about what happened in the dorms, and questioned Lacey about if she was really serious about being in the competition and becoming a head chef. Lacey argued she was serious, but Robert told her that she should be learning from people with more experience like himself instead of fighting with them like she did with the red team. However, by that point, Lacey felt that everyone has turned on her. She also stated that she did not care about their thoughts, and that the only opinion that mattered to her was Ramsay's. Team challenge The next morning, both teams met Ramsay in the red kitchen who wanted to work with tartares for that day. He gave both teams a beef tartare and a scallop tartare for them to taste, but in reality, the beef tartare was tuna, while the scallop tartare was sea bass. When neither team could correctly identify both tartares, Ramsay told them the truth and was disappointed that they could not correctly identify the ingredients in each of them. Since Ramsay expected all the chefs to have great palates, he introduced the annual Blind Taste Test for their next challenge. Because the red team had an extra member, LA volunteered to sit out to even both teams at four members each, shocking her team. Ben and Andrea were the first pair to go head to head, and put on their blindfolds and headphones. Neither of them scored on the filet mignon, but while both of them scored on the fried egg white and beets, Ben got the romaine lettuce while Andrea did not, so the blue team was leading 3-2. Giovanni and Robert were next, but both failed to correctly guess all four of their ingredients, leaving it 3-2 for the blue team. Carol and Lacey were up next, and Carol was able to correctly guess mushrooms and beef liver, while both correctly guessed sweat potatoes, making the score 5-4 for the red team. The final pair up was Danny against Paula, but for that round, Ramsay presented a minestrone soup and told them to guess as many of the ten ingredients as they could. Danny managed to get the first three correctly, but Paula managed to get the last four correctly, which gave the red team the win 8-7. Reward The red team was rewarded with a photo shoot for TV Guide in the restaurant, and received makeovers. Punishment The blue team had to serve lunch to the red team and prep both kitchens for that night’s dinner service, much to both Robert and Danny's dismay, as it was the third time the blue team had to do it. Despite knowing they were all down from their loss, Ben told the blue team that they had to get their acts together if they wanted to win the service. When Ben served the red team champagne, a light flash shocked him and caused him to spill them on the table. Before service While prepping for that night’s service, Lacey's negative attitude angered Ben and Danny, who wanted her gone. With only a couple of minutes left, both teams got to work on finishing their prep. Once everyone was ready, Ramsay told Jean-Philippe to open Hell’s Kitchen. Dinner service Actors Eric McCormick from “Will and Grace”, and Robert Patrick from “Terminator 2”, were in attendance that evening. Paula's first risottos were mushy and salty, which surprised Ramsay as she never made a mistake like that before. Meanwhile, Robert made too much spaghetti for one table, and Ben was sent to help him out. Because of Ben's help, Robert was able to send appetizers out to the diners, while Paula sent her refired risotto, which was deemed acceptable. 45 minutes into dinner service and the actors' orders were being taken, with the blue team getting McCormick’s table and the red team getting Patrick’s table. Fortunately, both teams were able to get their appetizers out to them without problems. Carol's convection oven was turned down as she did not want the Wellingtons to burn, but Ramsay called her ditzy since that meant the Wellingtons would cook longer than needed. In the meantime, the blue team were working on McCormick’s entrée, but a panicked Lacey whispered to Ben that she had no idea what she was doing on the meat station. Despite Danny and Ben trying to calm her down, she got upset and bluntly told Ramsay that she had no clue when her entrées would be ready. Danny went over to try and help her, but her confusion did not help matters, and then, she revealed to Ramsay that she did not know how to cook meat. Ramsay sent Lacey to the pantry room and ordered her to wake up and get a grip. Ben went over to find Lacey's well-done Wellington but accidentally burned his finger on the hot pan. One hour into service, and while Ben and Lacey were struggling on their entrées, Robert continued to push appetizers out for the blue kitchen, even ripping his pants in the process. Back in the red kitchen, Carol's Wellingtons were cold, but she promised Ramsay that she would try and get it together. Carol did not communicate with Andrea, and as a result, Andrea sent an overcooked John Dory to the pass. Despite Andrea and Carol's lack of communication, the red team were sending out entrées, which included Robert Patrick’s table. Automatic elimination Wanting to get Eric McCormick’s entrées out, Ramsay sent Ben back to the garnish station, much to Lacey's dismay. Her poor performance continued as she sent out lamb that had thinly sliced chops to the pass. That was the final straw for Ramsay as he kicked Lacey out of the kitchen claiming that she was not good enough. Lacey went into the pantry room, where Ramsay followed her and told her that she cannot waste any more of his time, therefore making her time in the competition over. Lacey handed Ramsay her jacket and said goodbye to the blue team, but none of the men responded as they were relieved that she was finally gone. Then, Lacey packed her belongings up in the dorms and left through the back loading area. Ramsay gave no comment on Lacey's elimination. Two hours into service, the blue team was now down to three chefs and Ramsay urged all of them to not give up. With Danny now on the meat station and Robert on the fish station, the blue team started to push entrées out at a fast pace, with Eric McCormick’s table finally getting their entrées. Meanwhile, Jean-Philippe brought back Carol's undercooked lamb dishes, much to Ramsay’s frustration. Carol sliced her Wellingtons and hoped they were well-done, but they were undercooked, causing Carol to tell LA to slow down on the garnishes, much to LA's frustration. Then, LA served cold and bland mashed potatoes, causing Ramsay to order her to wake up. The blue team continued their great momentum and were on their last ticket of that night, while Carol's problems on the meat station continued as she lost a chicken order, which slowed the red team even further. Eventually, the blue team finished their last ticket with Robert extremely proud that they were able to fight back and serve all their tables, despite being two chefs down. Back in the red kitchen, Ramsay told the five team members that the blue team, who had three chefs, just finished their last table while they were still waiting on Carol's lamb. After ranting how Andrea, Carol , and LA screwed the red team up, Ramsay decided to switch off the red kitchen. Post-mortem When both teams were lined up, Ramsay confirmed to a relieved blue team that spacey Lacey was gone, while tossing her jacket aside. After, Ramsay named the blue team winners by a mile for the best teamwork he had seen in Hell’s Kitchen, and for getting all their orders out first. After telling LA that she forgot her alarm clock and sleeping blanket, Ramsay named the red team losers for their lack of teamwork, and told them to think of two people for elimination. Back in the dorms, Carol knew she would be nominated for her poor performance that night, but also said that Andrea should be up as well. However, Andrea argued that Carol and LA should be up for elimination, and Paula agreed with Andrea, although LA believed that Paula's decision was because she and Andrea had become friends since the beginning. Giovanni believed that LA was weaker than Carol, and LA chose Carol and Andrea as her choices. With three names called and no one agreeing to a consensus, the red team was divided. Elimination When Ramsay asked the red team if they came to a consensus, Carol and Paula revealed that they did not as there were multiple opinions, but Ramsay told them to cut the bullshit as he was not in the mood for it. Paula said that LA was the red team’s first nominee and Carol was the second, but she admitted that Andrea's name was also discussed. An annoyed Ramsay called the three women down to the front. After listening to their pleas, Ramsay called Carol and Andrea's names, told them to get back in line, before eliminating LA for looking asleep in the last few services and being convinced she was lacking the passion to cook. Ramsay's comment: "LA was a real workhorse in the kitchen. I kicked her out of Hell's Kitchen because she lacked two crucial skills to be a great chef – leadership and creativity." LA received the coat hanging and burning picture sequence, but Lacey did not. Category:Season 5 Category:Episodes